1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to data processing systems. More specifically, my invention is primarily relates to a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product for displaying a chain of rotating color output units on a displayer of a data processing system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Color graphical user interfaces, including color text displaying, are becoming increasingly common in the workplace and home today. Most of the computer software, including various operating systems, word processing applications, and other user-friendly software application, has employed color graphical user interfaces. Color text displaying is widely used in such areas, where the color text can provide more attraction to the viewer than the regular black text.
Color graphical user interfaces and color text displaying are well known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 5,872,555 discloses a method and apparatus for editing the custom colors from a Quick Color Selector on a personal computer desktop. An Edit Custom Colors button is provided on the Quick Color Selector. Activating this button causes a Color Editor to appear, either as a separate window or as an expansion of the Quick Color Selector. This invention also provides for a user to specify which custom color chip is to be edited (the target chip). In particular, navigation controls are provided to enable the user to move an identifying cursor across an array of custom color chips. The navigation controls may appear in the Quick Color Selector or in the Color Editor. The Quick Color Selector still exhibits its expected transient behavior in that it, together with any separate Color Editor window, disappears immediately after the user selects a color chip. Navigation controls are also applicable to the Persistent Color Selector, where they provide for consistency with the Quick Color Selector, and allow the user to specify the target color chip independently of the currently selected color chip. In order to practice this invention, a user must first highlight a target area, second specify or customize a color, and third display the target area in the color. This invention enables a user to specify and customize the color of a highlighted area, but not a highlighted text, on a displayer of a data processing system.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,021,417 discloses a method and an apparatus of stimulating the creation of an artist""s drawing or painting. This invention features in one embodiment a method of simulating the creation of a mock artist""s drawing or painting image on a monitor, from an electronically-stored image, comprising translating the electronically-stored image into instructions capable of creating the mock image; generating and displaying on the monitor an icon which simulates drawing or painting the mock image; and using the instructions to move the icon across the monitor, wherein the mock image is created gradually as the icon moves across the monitor, to simulate the process by which an artist may create the mock image. In another embodiment, this invention features a method of simulating the creation of a mock artist""s drawing or painting image on a monitor, from an electronically-stored image, comprising: electronically storing a plurality of display textures for use in creating the mock image; translating the electronically-stored image into instructions capable of creating the mock image, including determining a display-parameter value of pixels of the electronically-stored image, and dividing the determined values into groups, in which the groups represent continuous portions of a display parameter spectrum; and in which the translating step further includes substituting the stored display textures for portions of the electronically-stored image; generating and displaying on the monitor an icon which simulates drawing or painting the mock image; and using the instructions to move the icon across the monitor, wherein the mock image is created gradually as the icon moves across the monitor, to simulate the process by which an artist may create the mock image. In yet another embodiment, this invention features a method of simulating the creation of a mock artist""s drawing or painting image on a monitor, from an electronically-stored image, comprising: electronically storing a plurality of display textures for use in creating the mock image, including determining the gray scale value of pixels of the electronically-stored image, dividing the determined gray scale values into groups, and in which the translating step includes substituting the stored display textures for portions of the electronically-stored image; generating and displaying on the monitor an icon which simulates drawing or painting the mock image; and using the instructions to move the icon across the monitor, wherein the mock image is created gradually as the icon moves across the monitor, to simulate the process by which an artist may create the mock image, including displaying on the monitor the substituted display textures in the areas of the display corresponding to the substituted portions of the electronically-stored image, and in which displaying on the monitor the substituted display textures includes gradually creating on the monitor the substituted display textures, and in which gradually creating the substituted display textures includes moving the icon across the monitor in a predetermined movement pattern, in which the predetermined movement pattern is accomplished in one area of the display corresponding to the substituted portions of the electronically-stored image at a time, and further in which gradually creating on the monitor the substituted display textures includes creating the display textures along the path on which the icon traverses the monitor, as the icon traverses the monitor. This invention is capable of present different images in different colors on a displayer of a data processing system. However, this invention is not capable of displaying a chain of rotating color text in different colors on a displayer of a data processing system.
What is needed then is a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product for displaying a chain of rotating color output units on a displayer of a data processing system.
Accordingly, it is a principal objective of my invention to provide a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product that is capable of displaying rotating color output units, such as a chain of rotating color output units, on a displayer of a data processing system.
It is a further objective of my invention to provide a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product that is capable of displaying rotating color output units, such as a chain of rotating color output units, on a displayer of a data processing system in an efficient way.
It is a still further objective of my invention to provide a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product that is capable of displaying rotating color output units, such as a chain of rotating color output units, in randomly selected colors from all available colors on a displayer of a data processing system in an efficient way.
It is a still further object of my invention to provide a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product that is capable of displaying rotating color output units, such as a chain of rotating color output units, in randomly selected colors from a pre-determined color sequence on a displayer of a data processing system in an efficient way.
It is a still further object of my invention to provide a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product that is capable of displaying rotating color output units, such as a chain of rotating color output units, in sequentially selected colors from a pre-determined color sequence on a displayer of a data processing system in an efficient way.
Other objects of my invention, as well as particular features, elements, and advantages thereof, will be elucidated in, or apparent from, the following description and the accompanying drawing figures.
According to my present invention I have provided a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product for displaying a chain of rotating color output units on a displayer of a data processing system. The data processing system can be a regular data processing system, a digital data processing system, or like. The present invention provides a method for displaying a chain of input units as a chain of rotating color output units in different colors according to a color sequence on a displayer of a data processing system that comprises generating a request to start a process for displaying the chain of input units as the chain of rotating color output units in different colors according to the color sequence on the displayer, selecting a background color for the displayer, creating a color sequence, making the background color unavailable to the color sequence, getting an input unit from an inputting device, getting a color from the color sequence, and displaying the input unit as an output unit in the color got from the color sequence on the displayer of the data processing system. The method further comprises repeating the step of getting an input unit from an inputting device, the step of getting a color from the color sequence, and the step of displaying the input unit as an output unit in the color got from the color sequence on the displayer of the data processing system for each input unit until all the input units have been inputted and displayed as a chain of rotating color output units in different colors according to the color sequence on the displayer of the data processing system.
The present invention also provides an apparatus for displaying a chain of input units as a chain of rotating color output units in different colors according to a color sequence on a displayer of a data processing system that comprises a means for generating a request to start a process for displaying the chain of input units as the chain of rotating color output units in different colors according to the color sequence on the displayer, a means for selecting a background color for the displayer, a means for creating a color sequence, a means for making the background color unavailable to the color sequence, a means for getting an input unit from an inputting device, a means for getting a color from the color sequence, and a means for displaying the input unit as an output unit in the color got from the color sequence on the displayer of the data processing system. The apparatus further comprises a means for repeating the step of getting an input unit from an inputting device, the step of getting a color from the color sequence, and the step of displaying the input unit as an output unit in the color got from the color sequence on the displayer of the data processing system for each input unit until all the input units have been inputted and displayed as a chain of rotating color output units in different colors according to the color sequence on the displayer of the data processing system.
The present invention further provides a computer program product having a computer readable medium having computer program logic recorded thereon for a method for displaying a chain of input units as a chain of rotating color output units in different colors according to a color sequence on a displayer of a data processing system that comprises a computer readable means for generating a request to start a process for displaying the chain of input units as the chain of rotating color output units in different colors according to the color sequence on the displayer, a computer readable means for selecting a background color for the displayer, a computer readable means for creating a color sequence, a computer readable means for making the background color unavailable to the color sequence, a computer readable means for getting an input unit from an inputting device, a computer readable means for getting a color from the color sequence, and a computer readable means for displaying the input unit as an output unit in the color got from the color sequence on the displayer of the data processing system.
The input unit can be a character, a word, a symbol, or any definable unit. The input unit can be defined by either a user, or the data processing system. The output unit has the same definition as the input unit. The inputting devices include keyboard, mouse, voice recognition devices, computer readable medium, and like. The color sequence can be created by either the data processing system, or a user. The displayer can be a screen of a color monitor of a data processing system, a printout of a color printer connected to the data processing system, or any kind of color displaying device of a data processing system.